The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Wednesday, stated that it had concluded arrangements to carry out a comprehensive audit of all the Orphanage homes operating in the nation’s capital.
The audit, according to the FCTA, will be carried out to ascertain the number of such homes operating in the territory and to know the level of compliance in accordance with the Child Rights Act.
Reacting to allegations that the authorities of the FCT administration were out to forcefully outlaw the operation of orphanage homes in the nation’s capital, Tpl. Umar Shuaibu, Coordinator of Abuja Metropolitan Management Council, AMMC, maintained that the establishment of an orphanage home in a modern city like Abuja must follow the Master Plan.
Shuaibu described FCT as a role model of the 36 states of the federation and the implementation of the Child Rights Act in FCT as paramount, critical and must be strictly adhered to.
He said, “We are going to make sure that henceforth, all orphanages in Abuja we will audit them. To ensure that everyone of them conforms with the rules and regulations governing the practice of this activity, in order to forestall problems like this one (Kubwa orphanage saga) in the future.”
Reacting to reports alleging that the FCT Administration had failed to provide succour to orphans of the recently demolished Divine Wound Jesus Christ Orphanage in Kubwa, the acting Secretary of FCT Social Development Secretariat, Hajia Safiya Umar said that the orphanage contravened all rules and regulations setting up an orphanage in a designated area.
Umar, who acknowledged some administrative lapses in monitoring the activities of private orphanage in Abuja, however, assured residents of the preparedness of the relevant agencies to block all loopholes in the operation of orphanage.
